Palestinian prime minister welcomes Spain's recognition of Palestinian state

ANKARA

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa welcomed on Sunday an announcement by Spain, along with Ireland and Norway, that it will recognize a Palestinian state from May 28.

"With this significant step, Spain has once again demonstrated its unwavering commitment to the two state solution and to delivering justice to the Palestinian people," Mustafa said at a joint press conference after his meeting with Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares in Brussels.

The three European countries made the announcements in coordinated moves on Wednesday, triggering an immediate response from Israel which recalled its ambassadors from Dublin, Madrid and Oslo.

Mustafa said establishment of a Palestinian state is "the only way to achieve just and comprehensive peace in the region."

He called on all states that have not yet recognized the state of Palestine to take this decision "as soon as possible" as a "step towards ending the grave injustice to which Palestinian people have been subjected to for many decades."

"The Palestinian government is committed to work hard to support our people in Gaza and to integrate them into Palestinian Authority to work on reforming and improving the performance of our institutions, and deliver good services for our citizens in Gaza and the West Bank, in preparation for full independence and statehood," he said.

Israel has killed nearly 36,000 people, most of them women and children, in Gaza since last October.